The end is nigh! And I’m not talking about the mortgage market. Like everything attached to Wall Street, it’ll rebound. But the major-label music industry that has evolved in the decades since Elvis Presley first set foot in Sun Studios appears to be in something of a free fall, with a sales downturn of 30 percent compared with this time last year staring record execs in the face, and Apple commanding something approaching a stranglehold on digital delivery services. We may indeed be witnessing the death throes of an industry we’ve all come to know and, well, tolerate. Which means the big labels should be pulling out all the stops this fall to get units moving in any way possible. On the bright side, forecasts of doom and gloom for the record industry tend to benefit us consumers: in a groundbreaking decision, for example, Capitol (finally!) allowed iTunes access to the once digitally sacrosanct John Lennon catalogue. The digitized Beatles can’t be far off. And said doom and gloom is also bound to make for some marketing ploys, like the proselytizing small-venue tour that dirty Detroit rock-rapper KID ROCK has planned as part of a “promotional blitz” to create a frenzy over his provocatively titled October 9 Atlantic release Rock N Roll Jesus. (Take that, John Lennon!)

Once all the September hoopla over who’s the biggest rapper of them all — Kanye or 50 Cent (answer: Jay-Z) — settles down, late September is looking good for the return of some familiar and reliable rockers. Dave Grohl’s FOO FIGHTERS just celebrated the 10th anniversary (yes, it’s been that long, and you are that much older now) of their second album, The Colour and the Shape, with a deluxe two-disc reissue this summer. But that was all designed to spark interest in yet another solid piece of rock, Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace (RCA; September 25), an album that has Grohl indulging in a little American guitar picking with Kaki King on the timely “The Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners.” Don’t worry, though: the first single, “The Pretender,” which is already available through iTunes (do you sense a recurring theme here?), is a classic Foo rocker, just a little bit angry and vengeful, but powered by a rousing, bloodletting chorus.

Neil Young and Crazy Horse Neil Young was starting his transition from pop melodist to free-ranging noisemaker when he played these songs at New York City’s most famous rock hall on a bill with the Steve Miller Band and Miles Davis.

The U.S. VS. John Lennon Those who are drawn to the darker side of John Lennon may find this documentary from David Leaf and John Scheinfeld’s about the murdered ex-Beatle’s political activism a tad squeaky clean. Watch the trailer for The U.S. VS. John Lennon (QuickTime)

Rallying cries An increasingly unpopular war, a body count that grows daily even as our commander-in-chief touts our military triumphs, and an increasing sense of uneasiness as it becomes all too apparent that our leaders have been less than candid.

St. Anger Plus new albums by Jewel, the BellRays, and Rebel Meets Rebel.

SEND IN THE CLOWNS | July 02, 2009 The New York Post got to resurrect its priceless "Wacko Jacko" headline. Barbara Walters scored Super Bowl-level ratings without having to lift a pretty little finger. And Michael Jackson, well, no matter how you slice it, he got screwed royally.

ARRESTING DEVELOPMENTS | September 16, 2008 Lack of talent, charisma, and/or personality can prevent a good band from achieving greatness — but too much of a good thing can also be a problem.

ROCK THERAPIES | July 22, 2008 A little over four years ago, the Boston music scene lost one of its cuter couples when singer-songwriter Blake Hazard and guitarist/producer John Dragonetti left town for LA.

FORTUNATE ONE | July 07, 2008 It was no surprise to find Chris Brokaw in Hawaii last week, just two Saturdays before he’s due back in Cambridge to pull a double shift upstairs at the Middle East.